Lost: The complete Blu-Ray box set

So, before Lost becomes a distant memory I thought I'd make my first 'blog' about it, picking up on the tail-end of last week's finale.

It would be fair to say that I have become a little bit of a fanatic since first watching in late November last year. Initially I was completely incredulous to what might be the best piece of television ever produced. When I first heard about Lost back in 2004 the concept made absolutely no sense to me; how, in an age of modern technology, black-box flight recorders and GPS can someone get 'lost' on a deserted island? Surely this is just an updated Robinson Crusoe/Swiss Family Robinson/Lord of the Flies, I thought?

How wrong I was! I went through my entire three years as an Undergrad (2005-2008) ignorantly taking the piss. First, my flatmates, who would all huddle round a laptop in someone's room to watch the latest episode, making me feel like the castaway, and then my housemate of two years who, bless him, persevered in his pestering of me to watch it.

Said pestering eventually paid off when late last year, with nothing better to do, and to get my then ex-housemate off my back, I gave it a chance. Best decision I'd ever made (perhaps saying something about my wider life). Within two weeks I had caught up with all five seasons, and to say I was hooked would be an understatement. Oh how I repented for my former sinfulness, I had seen the light!

Which brings us around to the sixth and final season which has just ended. And in a perfect manner it ended too. Many 'Losties' (and I use the term lightly in the context of this) didn't really understand the end, and slated it accordingly. "What, they were dead all along?! What utter bollocks!". No! You morons!

Whilst the finale did fail to answer some of the larger, mythological questions surrounding the island, I am of the opinion that this was the correct way to end it. What writers Lindelof and Lieber did satisfactorily was to wrap up all the character's story arcs. It was always the characters which drove the show; Jack, Sawyer, Hurley, Jin, Sun, Locke, Desmond, Ben, Sayid, hell, even Kate. All their storylines came to a gratifying close, which somehow made the larger questions about the island seem somewhat distant and nonessential from the human story they were trying to tell. Sure, I would have liked to know what exactly the island was and the whole mythology behind it. More so, I had a lot of pedant's questions; What the hell was all that with Walt? What was going on with that fertility storyline? Who was making the airdrops? How did the others get there in the first place before Jacob took over? Who the Time Lord Eloise actually was? What exactly happened in Jacob's cabin? I was also a tad disappointed at the lack of another Desmond-Penny moment akin to 'The Constant', but these are all small niggles in a show that has given more "WTF" moments than any other. But, because all the characters had satisfactory endings, I don't mind remaining a little 'lost' over the larger specter of the island itself, and for me, any good story always leaves a little something to the imagination.

So, with nothing to look forward to on Tuesdays now, all that remains is to wait for the blu-ray box set. And my! What a box set it is!

Perhaps the most well presented box set of anything I have ever seen! And I thought 'Alan Wake' would be hard to top. The contents of this beautifully crafted special edition set include:

• Every episode from all six seasons housed in collectible packaging.
• Images of the box art.
• A special edition 'Senet' game, as seen in season six (M.I.B's game).
• A custom Lost island replica.
• An exclusive episode guide.
• A collectible Ankh.
• A black light penlight.
• "A unique series of featurettes that take viewers on a very personal tour of Oahu where the series was created".
• "Exploring the global phenomenon that is Lost".
• "A closer look at some of the props with cast, writers and producers, exploring their significance, stories and emotional ties to the characters".
• "A humourous, yet emotional look at every character who died on the series".
• "16 hilarious Lost Slapdown” featurettes showcasing celebrity Lost fans who confront Executive Producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse to ask press questions about the final season, including the Muppets and cast members Nestor Carbonell, Michael Emerson, Rebecca Mader and more".

The season 6 box set (included in the collectible edition pictured above) will also contain some extra goodies. These include:

• Bloopers and deleted scenes.
• Audio commentaries on four episodes (LA X, Dr. Linus, Ab Aeterno and Across the Sea).
• "The End: Crafting A Final Season".
• "A Hero's Journey".
• "See You In Another Life, Brotha".
• "LOST on Location".
• Plus the rumoured epilogue which will allow viewers to "go deeper into the world of LOST with a much-anticipated new chapter of the island’s story from Executive Producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse".

Certainly all looks fantastic! Heaven knows how much this will set us all back, especially the blu-ray edition. So I recommend all you Losties start saving your pennies now.

Hurley and Ben spin-off please!!!

(Thanks to http://www.slashfilm.com/2010/05/28/lost-complete-collection-box-art-and-contents-revealed/ for box set information)